CET 06213: PAVEMENT DESIGN AND

CONSTRUCTION
 Introduction
• A road pavement is a structure of
superimposed layers of selected and
processed materials that is placed on the
basement soil or subgrade.
• The main structural function of a pavement is
to support the wheel loads applied to the
carriageway and distribute them to the
underlying subgrade.
 Pavement Design
• Pavement design is concerned with
developing the most economical combination
of pavement layers that will ensure that the
stresses and strains transmitted from the
carriageway do not exceed the supportive
capacity of each layer, or of the subgrade,
during the design life of a road
 Types of Pavements
• Three types of pavements
– Rigid Pavements
– Flexible Pavements
– Composite Pavements
 Rigid Pavements
• In general consist of Portland cement concrete pavement
slabs constructed on granular base layer over the subgrade
soil.
• A pavement constructed of Portland Cement is assumed to
possess considerable flexural strength that will permit it to
act as a beam and allow it to bridge over minor irregularities,
that would occur in the subbase or subgrade on which it rests
• Portland cement concrete may be placed directly on a
carefully prepared subgrade but more commonly are
constructed on a relatively thin subbase of sand, soil –
cement or some other subbase
Rigid Pavement Details
Portland Cement
Concrete Slab

Subbase

Subgrade

Portland Cement
Concrete Slab

Subgrade
 Flexible Pavements
• In general consist of an asphalt-bound surface course or
layer on top of unbound base and subbase granular layers
over the subgrade soil.
• A flexible pavement structure maintains intimate contact
with and distributes loads to the subgrade and depends on
aggregate interlock, particle friction, and cohesion for
stability
• Thus, the classical flexible pavement includes primarily
those pavements that are composed of series of granular
layers topped by a relatively thin high – quality bituminous
wearing surface
Flexible Pavement Details
Composite Pavements (Semi-Rigid Pavement)
• Composite Pavements - consist of asphaltic
concrete surface course over PCC or treated
(stabilized) base or subbase.
• When stabilized base or subbase are used, the
pavement layer has considerable flexural
strength than the common flexible pavement
layer.
• However these materials do not posses as much
flexural strength as the cement concrete
pavements.
Composite Pavement Details
Asphalt Concrete/
Surface dressing
Portland Cement
Concrete Slab

Subbase

Subgrade Asphalt Concrete/

Surface dressing
Cement-Stabilized
Base and/or
Subbase

Subgrade
Components Layers of a Flexible Pavement
• Surfacing - The uppermost layer of a flexible
pavement is called the surfacing
• Base course – Main structural layer of a
flexible pavement
• Subbase - A subbase is very often present in a
flexible pavement as a separate layer beneath
the roadbase. Whether it is present, or how it
is used, depends upon its intended
function(s).
 Functions of Surfacing Layer
– The primary function of this layer is to provide a
safe, smooth, stable riding surface, i.e. a
carriageway, for traffic
– The secondary functions are to contribute to the
structural stability of the pavement and protect it
from the natural elements
 Functions of Surfacing Layer…
– The wearing course forms the uniform carriageway
surface upon which vehicles run. Ideally it should:
• Offer good skid resistance
• Allow for the rapid drainage of surface water,
• Minimize traffic noise
• Resist cracking and rutting
• Withstand traffic turning and braking forces
• Protect the underlying road structure
• Require minimal maintenance
• Be capable of being recycled or overlaid
• Be durable and give value for money
 Functions of Basecourse Layer
• The roadbase, which provides the platform for the
surfacing, is the main structural layer in a flexible
pavement.
• As the stresses induced in a flexible pavement by the
applied wheel loads decrease with depth, the main
function of the roadbase is to distribute the loads
transmitted to it so that the strength capacities of the
weaker subbase and subgrade are not exceeded.
• Roadbase in flexible pavements are normally
designed to be very dense .and highly stable, and to
resist fatigue cracking and structural deformation
 Functions of Subbase Layer
• As the structural layer within the pavement
the subbase further distributes the applied
wheel loads to the weaker subgrade below.
• Whilst the subbase materials is of a lesser
quality (and, thus, is normally cheaper) than
the roadbase material, it must be able to resist
the stresses transmitted to it via the roadbase
and it must always be stronger than the
subgrade quality.
 Functions of Subbase Layer…
– Another major function of the subbase is to act as a working
platform for, and protect the subgrade from, site and construction
vehicles as a pavement is being built. This is especially important
when the subgrade is of poor quality, e.g. clayey or silty, as the
critical load-carrying period is when the heavy wheel loads used in
the laying and compaction of the roadbase are applied to the
subbase during construction. If the subgrade is strong, e.g. granular,
a subbase may not be needed.
– A well-graded dense subbase may be used (with or without
geotextile filter) to prevent the upward infiltration of fine-grained
subgrade soil into a roadbase. This ‘subgrade intrusion’ function is
especially important during construction, when site traffic and
compaction loadings are high. It may also be used to present
moisture from migrating upward from the subgrade into, say, a soil-
aggregate roadbase, or to protect a vulnerable subgrade from
downward frost action.
Functions of Subbase /Capping Layer/Formation Level
– An open-graded subbase may be used as a drainage layer to
pass moisture that falls during construction or which enters the
pavement after construction. Removal of the water is best
ensured by extending the subbase through the shoulders into
longitudinal drains located at their edges; these drains should
not be allowed to clog-up and should have periodic outlets
that are well maintained.
– When the subgrade soil is weak a capping layer may be created
to provide a working platform for equipment used to lay the
subbase. This is most commonly done by improving the top of
the subgrade, e.g. by adding a layer of imported material that
is stronger than the subgrade soil or by stabilizing the upper
reaches of the subgrade with, say, lime or cement.
– The interface between the subbase and the subgrade (or
between subbase and the capping) is termed the formation.
 Components Layers of a Rigid Pavement
• The cross-section of a rigid roadway comprises of a pavement
superimposed upon the subgrade, and most usually this
pavement is composed of a cement concrete slab on top of a
subbase.
• The pavement is described as being a rigid pavement because
the slab is composed pavement-quality concrete with
considerable flexural strength which enables it to act as a
beam and bridge over any minor irregularities in the surface
of the layer beneath.
• The concrete slab substitutes for the combined surfacing and
roadbase in a new flexible pavement. As the traffic runs
directly on the top of the slab the concrete surface must
provide a smooth comfortable ride and have good skid
resistance under all weather conditions.
 Steps in the Design of
A New Pavement
• Estimation of traffic in terms of
commercial vehicles
• Evaluation of the strength of the
subgrade
• Selection a combination of material
types and associated thickness of
pavement layers
 Estimation of traffic
• Traffic survey – Only heavy vehicles are
counted (weighed) for the purpose of
structural pavement design
• Axle load survey should also be done –
7 days, 24 hours survey
• Cumulative traffic throughout the
design life of the pavement is
calculated
Estimation of traffic
Evaluation of Subgrade Strength

• Soil sampling along the centerline of

the road
• Material testing in the laboratory to
determine strength of the existing
foundation soil
• Detection of problem soils that need
special consideration
• For the purpose of pavement design the using
Tz. Pavement and Materials Design Manual
Subgrade is classified according to CBR
strength into 3 groups S3, S7, S15
 Selection of Materials and Layer
Thickness
• Locally available materials are evaluated –
should meet specified requirements
(properties)
• If locally available materials do not meet
specification, material stabilization option is
considered
• Layer thicknesses are chosen based on
strength of the subgrade and cumulative traffic
 Selection of Pavement Materials
• Materials used in the structural layers of the
pavement are selected according to criteria of:
– Availability,
– Economic factors; and
– Previous experience
• Their suitability for use depends primarily on
the design traffic level of the pavement and
climate
 Materials Options
• Unbound Materials
– Natural Materials
– Crushed Materials
• Cemented (Stabilized) Materials
• Bituminous Materials
 Materials Quality Control
• Materials from the borrow pits are usually tested
both during the design stage and construction to
ensure their quality
• Testing frequency are specified in the specifications
• Details of the method to assess data from the quality
control of material properties are usually given
Standard Specifications for Highway Construction
• Reference to the relevant standards are given in
Standard Specifications for Highway Construction for
manufactured materials such as lime, cement and
bitumen
 Construction Quality Control
• Conducted during construction to check
whether processed materials meets specified
properties
– Laboratory Tests
– Field Tests
• Conducted by the contractor
• Conducted by the consultant
• Compliance is checked using project
specification
 Factors to be Considered in Design of
Pavements
• Subgrade Soil Condition
• Design Wheel Load
• Climatic Factors
• Pavement Component Materials
• Environmental Factors
 Subgrade Soil Condition
• The properties of the subgrade are important in
deciding the thickness requirements of pavements
• A subgrade with lower stability (strength) requires
thicker pavement to protect it from traffic loads
• The variations of subgrade strength with moisture
changes should be studied as these properties are
dependent on the seasonal characteristics.
• Apart from the design, the pavement to a greater
extent depends on the subgrade soil properties and
the drainage.
 Climatic / Environmental Factors
• Among the climatic factors, rainfall affects the moisture
conditions in the subgrade and the pavement layers.
• The daily and seasonal variations in temperature has significance
in the design and performance of rigid pavements and
bituminous pavements.
• Where freezing temperatures are prevalent during winter, the
possibility of frost action in the subgrade adds to the damaging
effects and should be considered at the design stage itself.
• The environmental factors such as height of embankment and its
foundations details, depth of cutting, depth of subsurface water
table etc affects the performance of the pavement
• The choice of the bituminous binder and the performance of the
bituminous pavements depends on the variations in pavement
temperature with the seasons in the region.
 Climatic / Environmental Factors
• For the purpose of pavement design(refer
Pavement and Materials Design Manual)
Tanzania- can be divided into 3 climatic
regions
1) Dry: rainfall less than evaporation no infiltration
rainfall greater than evaporation less than 1 month
2) Moderate: rainfall greater than evaporation 1 to 3
month
3) Wet: rainfall greater than evaporation more than 3
months
Climatic / Environmental Factors
 Design Wheel Load
• The thickness design of pavement primarily depends
upon the design wheel load.
• Higher wheel loads obviously need thicker
pavement, provided other design factors are the
same.
• The various wheel load factors to be considered in
pavement design are:
– Maximum Wheel Load
– Contact Pressure
– Dual or Multiple Wheel Loads and Equivalent Single
Wheel Load (wheel load Configuration)
– Repetition of Loads
 Design Wheel Load…

• The wheel load configurations are important to

know the way in which the loads of a given
vehicle are applied on the pavement surface.
• For highways, usually maximum legal axle load
are specified. Total load influences the
thickness requirements of a pavements.
• Tyre pressures influences the quality of surface
(wearing) course.
Design Wheel Load - Repetition of Loads
• The deformation of pavement or subgrade due to a
single application of wheel load may be small.
• But due to repeated application of the load, there
would be increased magnitude of plastic and elastic
deformations and the accumulated unrecovered or
permanent deformations may even result in
pavement failure.
• It is therefore required to carry traffic surveys for
accounting the factor of repetions for wheel loads in
the design of pavement.
• Such data collected are converted to some
consistent equivalent wheel loads.
 Load Repetitions…
• Depending on site conditions, a sufficient
number of load repetitions above a certain
magnitude causes fatigue in bound layers and
deformation in granular layers
• The damaging effect of all axles expected to
traverse the road is converted into Equivalent
Standard Axles (ESALs) and added up over a
chosen period (cumulative) to become the
basis for structural pavement design
• The Design Traffic Load is the cumulative
traffic expected to use the heaviest loaded
lane during the design period.
• The Design Traffic Load is expressed in millions
ESALs (E80)
 Loads for Highways
• The great variety of traffic using the highway
makes it necessary to replace the traffic loads by a
simple loading system that can be easily used in
pavement design.
• Although passenger cars form the highest
percentage of vehicles using the highway system,
their loads are small compared with those of
trucks. The loads produced by the movement of
heavy trucks are critical to pavements.
• The live highway loads that generally affect
pavement design consist of a combination of
single-unit and multiple-unit vehicles.
 Loads for Highways…
• Single units include all 2-, 3-, and 4- axle-unit
trucks and all buses. The axles are either single or
tandem, and are provided with single or dual tyres.
• Multiple units includes 3-, 4-, and 5- axle tractor
trucks with semi trailers, and all full trailer
combinations
• For the design of pavement we are required to
replace the mixed traffic that will use the highway
with an equivalent number of applications of
standard axle load
Loads for Highways…
 Loads for Highways
• Single Wheel, Single Axle

• Dual Wheel, Single Axle

• Single Wheel, Tandem Axle

• Dual Wheel, Tandem Axle

• Equivalent Standard Axle Load (ESAL) = 80kN = 8.2

tonnes
 Commercial Vehicles
• These are all goods or public service vehicles with unladen
weight exceeding 3000 kg, they contribute significantly to
structural damage of the pavement
• Axle loads are used to determine or evaluate damaging effect of
a vehicle on the road pavement
• Maximum single axle load has been incorporated in National
laws in order to control damage or road pavements
• Damaging power of an axle load depends very strongly on its
magnitude
• Damaging effect of any axle load is related to the damage
caused by the standard axle.
• Liddle formula is used to determine equivalence factor
of every axle load
– Liddle formula n is normally 4.55
– One passage of axle load (L tonnes) is equivalent to passages of a
standard axle load
 Standard Axle Load
• It is a single axle load with dual wheel carrying
80 KN load and
• The design of pavement is based on the
standard axle load.
 Equivalency Factors
• The damaging effect of an axle over the
pavement is expressed by the equivalency
factor related to an equivalent standard axle
(E80) of 8160 kg load:

• Used to convert different types of traffic

loading into equivalent standard axle loads
(ESALs).
 Equivalency Factors…
• Different vehicle types and weights cause varying
levels of stress and damage to the pavement.
• The ESAL allows engineers to convert these
varying impacts into a common unit for analysis
and design.
• To calculate the total ESALs for a certain traffic
volume, the number of repetitions for each type
of vehicle is multiplied by its respective load
equivalency factor
 Equivalency Factors…
• For example:
– If a single axle load of a truck is equivalent to 1.5 ESALs,
and that truck is expected to pass 200 times, the total
ESAL contribution from that truck would be:
– Total ESALs= Number of Repetitions × Load Equivalency
Factor
– = 200 ×1.5 = 300 ESALs
• An equivalent axle load factor defines the damage
per pass to a pavement by a certain type of an axle
load relative to the damage per pass of a standard
axle load.
 Vehicle Equivalency Factor (VEF)
• Vehicle equivalency factor (Truck factor) is
defined as the number of 80 kN single axle
load applications caused by a single passage
of a vehicle of the particular truck or vehicle
class.
• VEF can be applied to the results of traffic
counts to give the cumulative traffic loading
the pavement is subjected to over a given
period
 Example
Obtain the average number of standard axles per
commercial vehicle from the following survey data. Number
of commercial vehicles = 127
Equivale Standard
Mid- # of nt Factor Axles
Number Range (Tonnes) Point (L) Axles
Range (Tonnes) (N) (L/ (L/8.2)4.55 *
of Axles
(tonnes) 8.2)4.55 N
(N)
4 - 6 5 30 0.1053 3.159
4 - 6 30
6 - 8 7 45 0.4868 21.906
6 - 8 45
8 - 10 9 102 1.5274 155.794
8 - 10 102 10 - 12 11 55 3.8061 209.337
10 - 12 55 12 - 14 13 38 8.1393 309.295
12 - 14 38 15.608
14 - 16 21 14 - 16 15 21 5 327.779
16 - 18 10 27.586
18 - 20 5 16 - 18 17 10 1 275.861
45.758
18 - 20 19 5 9 228.795
 Example - Solution
• Number of standard axles per commercial vehicle

• Number of axles per commercial vehicles

 Determination of Cumulative Equivalent Standard Axles
• In order to determine the cumulative equivalent standard axles
over the design life of the road:
– Determine the daily traffic flow for each class of vehicle
weighed using the results of the traffic survey and any other
recent traffic counts information that is available.
– Determine the average daily one-directional traffic flow for
each class of vehicle
– Make a forecast of one-directional traffic flow for each class of
vehicle to determine the total traffic in each class that will
travel over each lane during the design life.
– Determine the mean equivalence factor of each class of vehicle
and for each direction from the results of the axle load survey
and any other surveys that have recently been carried out.
Determination of Cumulative Equivalent Standard Axles
– The products of the cumulative one directional traffic flows
for each class of vehicle over the design life of the road
and the mean equivalence factor for that class should then
be calculated and added together to give the cumulative
equivalent standard axle loading for each direction. The
higher of the two directional values should be used for
design.
• For the two-lane roads with two-way traffic and no significant
difference between the two traffic streams, the design
number of standard axles is assumed to be 50% of the total
number of standard axles in the two directions.
 Cumulative Equivalent Standard Axle Load (CESAL)

– Where
» NSA = Average Daily Number of Standard
Axles in the Year of Traffic Survey

»r = Annual Traffic Growth Rate Expressed

as a Decimal Fraction

»n = Design Period in Years

 Example
• A single carriage way road section with granular base
course is to be designed in a dry/moderate climatic
area. The CBR value of the subgrade was determined
to be 9%. Assuming that the traffic growth rate is 3%
per annum and the road is to be designed to last for
20 yrs, develop pavement design for the road section
(6m wide) using Pavement and materials Design
Manual (1999). The axle load survey data is attached
below.
Axle loads (kg) Number of axles per day in each direction
4450 300
5270 200
6750 100
7900 80
7990 60
8860 30
9980 20
a) Design improved subgrade layer
b) Calculate Cumulative number of standard
axles/ design traffic loading
c) Indicate the traffic load class
d) Design pavement layers
Axle loads (Kg) Number of axles Equivalency factors Number of
standard axles/day
(E80) in each
direction
4450 300 0.0634 19.0094
5270 200 0.1368 27.3576
6750 100 0.4218 42.1834
7900 80 0.863 69.0404
7990 60 0.9087 54.5191
8860 30 1.4542 43.6269
9980 20 2.4995 49.9901
TOTAL 305.727
• E80/day = 305.7

• r= 3% =0.03, n=20yrs
• Calculate CESAL =2.998 million E80
• Traffic Load class TLC 3
• Subgrade class S7
 ST
150mm CRS Granular Basecourse
200mm G45 Granular subbase
150 mm G15

Subgrade (CBR = 9%-S7)

Data for example 2

Direction 1 Direction 2
Axle loads (kg) Number of axles per Axle loads (kg) Number of axles
day per day
4450 300 5450 250
5270 200 5770 370
6750 100 6250 200
7900 80 7100 155
7990 60 7290 90
8860 30 8100 50
9980 20 9580 10
Axle loads Number of Equivalen No. of Axle loads Number of Equivalency No. of
(kg) axles per cy factors standard (kg) standard axles factors standard
day in axles/day in direction 2 axles/day
direction 1
4450 300 0.0634 5450 250 0.1594
19.0094 39.8432
5270 200 0.1368 5770 370 0.2066
27.3576 76.4472
6750 100 0.4218 6250 200 0.2972
42.1834 59.4421
7900 80 0.863 7100 155 0.5309
69.0404 82.2938
7990 60 0.9087 7290 90 0.5987
54.5191 53.8843
8860 30 1.4542 8100 50 0.967
43.6269 48.3489
9980 20 2.4995 9580 10 2.075
49.9901 20.7502

305.727 381.01
 Axles Loaded above 13 tonnes
-The proportion of the traffic loading as a result
of axles loaded to above 13 tonnes shall be
calculated from axle survey data
-If this proportion is 50% or higher the traffic
loading is defined as Heavy, denoted by an index
to the Traffic Load Class (TLC-H) as input to the
pavement design catalogue
• Heavy axle proportion is calculated as follows:

• The axle load data from the lane with the

highest value of E80 shall be used.
• A 2-lane road is planned to pass through a wet
climatic zone with subgrade CBR of 10%. The
design life is 20 yrs with traffic growth rate of
4% per annum. The data shown in the table
below is the traffic loading for this road. Carry
out a complete pavement design of the road
using Tanzania Pavement and Materials Design
procedures.
 Data: Example 1
Direction 1 Direction 2
Axle Number of Axle loads Number of
loads (kg) axles per day (kg) axles per day
5450 300 7450 250
7270 200 8770 370
6750 100 9250 200
14100 50 8100 155
13990 60 7290 90
8860 320 8100 50
9980 220 13580 10
• Data: Example 2
Direction 1 Direction 2
Number of
Axle loads (kg) Number of Axle loads axles per
axles per day (kg) day
5450 300 7450 250
7270 200 8770 370
6750 100 9250 200
14100 15 8100 155
13990 12 7290 90
8860 320 8100 50
9980 220 13580 10
• A road of cemented base-course is being designed in
a wet climatic zone area. At the time of construction
the traffic was estimated to be 3000 vehicles per day
in both directions with no more than 65% in one
direction. Commercial vehicles forms 40% of the
traffic and one commercial vehicle is equivalent to
0.8 standard axles. The CBR of the subgrade was
determined to be 11% and the traffic growth rate of
4% per annum was estimated. Develop a pavement
design for 20 years design period.
CBR = 3% , Design period =240 months, Growth rate =5%. Use Bituminous Mix
base course